The Field Experiences for Science Teachers (FEST) program is funded by the National Science Foundation and based in the Department of Geology and Geophysics at Yale University. Connecticut-based teachers of earth science (or related fields such as environmental science, physics, or chemistry) at the high school level are eligible to participate. Participants spend one week working on the Seismic Experiment for Imaging Structure beneath Connecticut (SEISConn) project, which aims to study the structure of the crust and upper mantle beneath Connecticut. Teachers participate in the installation and maintenance of seismic recording equipment in northern Connecticut and learn about the science goals of the SEISConn project, as well as tools for teaching about seismology and geophysics in the high school classroom. Teacher participants receive a $1000 stipend for participation in the one-week program. To date 19 Connecticut-based high school science teachers have participated in FEST, with 6 different one-week sessions held over the summers of 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2019.
To learn more about FEST, you can view a poster on the FEST program that was presented at the 2015 Fall Meeting of the American Geophysical Union, or read a short paper describing the FEST program was published in Seismological Research Letters in 2017.
The 2020 session of FEST will not be held as planned due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. Please stay tuned for information about the Summer 2021 program.